COOKINGWITHCAMPICHE
Chorizo stew over polenta
A cozy meal to bat away
the January blues
BY DAVID CAMPICHE
I found a package of homemade chorizo
in the back of the freezer.
I prefer to make my own sausage — no
preservatives, a nod to better health, and
there it was.
The pork sausage was permeated with
the pungent spices of clove and cinnamon
and I thought it wouldn’t marry well in a
preparation like a bolognese sauce.
Chorizo is a very fl avorful sausage. I use
a Kitchen Aid attachment and make sau-
sage frequently from pork shoulder, cut into
small chunks, refrigerated until very cold
and then fed through the food tube and into
b oudin casings. One can freeze the sausage
for up to three months.
Outside, winter poured home heavy rain-
water, bullied by an indomitable sou’wester
— a fi ne day to cook inside. But what to
concoct with this pungent sausage? I had
a hunkering for polenta and wished for a
sauce or topping that would chase away the
malaise of Pacifi c storms.
Here is what I invented.
Let’s call it David’s Chase away January
Blues Chorizo Stew.
Ingredients:
• 1 ½ pound chorizo
• 1 tablespoon crushed garlic
• One whole, large onion, diced
• One sweet pepper, preferably yellow
or orange for color. Add a second and the
dish almost resembles a tapenade.
• 2 cups mushrooms, diced.
• Two stalks celery, diced
• Two, 15 oz. cans diced tomatoes and
their juice
• 3 oz. tomato paste
• 2 cups homemade chicken stock
• Splash of red wine
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 2 tablespoons mushroom dust
• 2 cups pitted Kalamata (or black)
olives, halved
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar to
sharpen the taste
• Salt to taste
• Butter, Parmesan cheese and olive oil
• 2 cup polenta and eight cups of water
or chicken stock
Preparation:
Sauté the ground sausage in olive oil.
Break the meat up into small chunks. When
browned, add the onions and garlic. Cook
until the vegetables are translucent. Marry
in the celery, mushrooms and peppers, in
that order. Add the tomatoes and juice. Pour
in the red wine, vinegar and chicken stock.
Sprinkle on the chili powder and mushroom
dust. Stir and simmer for an hour and then
add the olives. Thicken with enough tomato
paste to create a smooth silky texture. Salt.
Adjust the seasonings with a hot chili sauce
(optional). Some like it hot. Some don’t.
Meanwhile, boil 8 cups of salted water
and evenly stir in the polenta. Continue to
stir until the cornmeal is thick and smooth.
Add a touch of butter and some grated Par-
mesan cheese.
David Campiche
A one bowl meal featuring chorizo stew over
polenta.
Ladle the polenta into a bowl and top
with this rich sauce. I chose to grate P ar-
mesan cheese over the sauce and served
the preparation in a simple ceramic bowl, a
one-bowl dinner. I came back for seconds.
You will too.
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